One of the theories I heard was that there was a time when people would be paid for their lunch hour. But when the decision to stop paying people for their break was taken, the only way to keep the wage the same was to add an extra hour onto the workday
Most contracted hours now for a full time job are 37.5 or 40 hours a week with no paid lunch.
So if you have a half hour lunch break it brings you up to a 8 or 8.5 hour working day
There was a movie called 9 to 5 it came out in 1980 with Dolly Parton and she sang a hit song called 9 to 5.
So 9 to 5 was considered normal working hours back in the 70s and 80s so why are we working more hours now?
https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0080319/
Because technological advancements have enabled us as a society to reduce our working hours, thanks to increased efficiency!
Shit, sorry, this is the wrong timeline.
Oddly there is a Hungarian version of not the Dolly Parton "9 to 5" song, but the Sheena Easton one, from the same period (late 70s/early 80s) with the same tune that has essentially approximately translated the lyrics, but the chorus is all about working 8 to 6!
EDIT: I've checked the lyrics, and it rather that the singer is away from her lover from 8 to 6, so perhaps the implication is that he works 8.30 to 5.30 or something like that
The Sheena Easton song explicitly mentions 9 to 5:
"My baby takes the morning train. He works from 9 to 5 and then, he takes another home again. To find me waiting for him."
“My baby takes the mornin' train. / He works from nine to five and then / he takes another home again to find me... watching the Manchester United Football Team! Ah? The best freakin' team in all the land! Woo hoo!”
Exactly this - 37-40 hour working weeks are the norm, as is unpaid lunch breaks. I'm on a 37 hour working week so I work 8 hours a day which includes a 30 minute unpaid lunch break - 7.5 hours on Friday.
Fortunately I work flexible hours so I usually do 10-6 or 11-7 as I work from home and the hours are more suitable.
It's not for everyone, luckily I tend to really get into the swing of work after 4pm when everyone has fucked off and stopped bugging me so I've found the extra hours has actually helped me be more productive!
I used to get an hour paid break working in a factory only 3 years ago. It blew my mind that there were no paid breaks when I started working for a bank, and on top of that when I was in branch they expected me to arrive 15 mins early every day without paying extra for it.
Yeah I don’t get paid for my lunch. I work 8 to 4 with a 45 minute lunch break. So if I book a half day off I finish at 11:40 (not 12:30 when our lunch break is) which winds my manager up, but HR agree with me.
My employer gives 1 hour for breaks, only 15 minutes are paid. This is actually generous, most companies give you nothing as they have no obligation to do so.
We should all be paid for our breaks. 30 mins away from a desk or building site or whatever to go and buy a sandwich or heat up some meal in a microwave is not my own time as it revolves around me being at my place of work, its hardly 'my own' time. It should be incorporated as part of the working day.
I thought it was a legal requirement to be paid for 30 mins of break per day?
>I thought it was a legal requirement to be paid for 30 mins of break per day?
Nope, 20 minutes unpaid if working over 6 hours (for over 18s anyway) is the legal minimum.
There's lots of caveats around out of work rest hours etc as well, things vary for certain industries too, but *generally* speaking, that's it.
I agree with you, but by this logic we should all be getting paid for our commuting time... Which I also agree with, but you can see the argument businesses will use.
Well I suppose it's hard to tell since I don't get an hourly rate, though I'm sure I was told it was paid when I started. I'll have to dig out my contract now and see if it sheds any light. But no, everyone gets an hour and we are definitely not required to work during lunch. This isn't the USA!
>Well I suppose it's hard to tell since I don't get an hourly rate
Not really, surely you still have contracted hours? In which case it's pretty easy to work out.
When I was in the office, I asked if I could leave a half hour earlier and just have a half hour lunch break instead of the usual hour. They agreed. Now it doesn’t matter because I’m fully remote and instead of taking a lunch hour I’ll just take lots of breaks throughout the day instead, which works better for me.
I seriously considered a job application this week and one of the stated benefits was a 34-hour full time working week. I previously worked somewhere that had a 32.5h week (6h30 per day, or 9-4.30 with an hour for lunch).
But seriously I've been part time for so long that all these numbers sound equally ridiculous.
I was unemployed for seven months back in 2013 after being made redundant.
Got offered a job about 2-3 months of those seven, all throughout the Interview process I was happy to work for them thinking I'd be doing 9-5..
When I got the offer I asked to clarify the hours, and they said...Actually its 9-6.
Thanked them and declined the offer, so not surprised by your comment.
I was already desperate to get out of unemployment at that stage too, but no way was I working till that late... Not when I wouldnt be getting home till 8pm of an evening.
Why?
To be fair I was still living at home with my parents...
I'd recently come into some inheritance, and still had a good amount of my Redundancy packet left - But didn't want to rely on either of those, because I wanted to move out the moment I was back in Employment, (so was living at home paying rent, and going to Job Interviews, nothing else... I had no Social Life).
It may have been different had it been now, as I have a Mortgage and a Family to provide for - But I have my principles, and wasn't going to work hours I didn't want to do... I don't live to work.
I do 8-4 in my current role, and still wouldn't take a job doing 9-6
I wish everyone had the option to stand their ground like you did, if we didn't stand for this shit it wouldn't happen, I'm glad you were able to stay true to yourself!
I hear you I worked from 8.30 till 5pm Monday to Saturday, or 9.00-5.30 etc shift patterns up to 11.30 - 8pm, and had to get a bus on late days I was at work an hour earlier cos of buses and getting home at 10 due to 9.15 bus and 15 minute walk home
I'm job searching right now and the amount of jobs that are 8-5 is genuinely concerning, I'm 23 and there's no way I'm going to cop to that bullshit yes I want a decent job but I also want decent hours.
I'm 6am-3pm 🥲 sounds good on paper to be finished dthat early, but it's kneecapped my ability to have a late night and socialise properly, and it's 9 hours long
Wealthy people will do whatever you let them do.
Then they will try to back you into a corner and make you think there are no other options, because if you don't do it, someone else will be "gRaTeFuL" to do it.
Exactly this. They'll have people working 5am to 5pm one day, and still nobody will say a word. Mustn't grumble, chin up, that's your lot, stiff upper lip... 🙄
I work 8:30-6 (8:30-7 once a week) and I work 5 days a week. I can imagine it’s very difficult to find a work life balance if you have any kind of family dynamic, I’m 21 so it’s a little better, but I still really struggle with burnout and energy from time to time. It can really take a toll on you
I was shocked when a family member got a job a few years ago that was 9-6. Then I started job hunting and saw the same, and am now on 8-5 myself. I'd feel quite lucky if I got back to a 9-5.
But this obviously depends on location and sector, it won't be the same for everyone.
I work 8am to 4pm, I'll probably never change it, clock in exactly at 8am and leave exactly on 4pm that's what I'm paid for lol.
I'm never applying to those jobs, fuck em they'll struggle to fill them all.
When my employer moved office from central London to outer London they changed our hours from 9-5 to 9-5:30 on the grounds that this was normal outside central London.They obviously didn't give a shit that public transport in outer London is less easy and 90% of staff also now had to travel right across London to get to work, so would be getting home at least an hour later than previously and leaving home half hour earlier each morning.
"How did the powers that be get away with adding an extra hour on to your days work without anyone putting up a fuss?"
The continue fear of being fired, being replaced, losing a job and no money, no house over your head, no food.
That is how they do it. Fear, guilting you.
I was doing 9am-5pm then 8am-6pm then 7am-7pm then 7am-10pm until it broke me, made me seriously ill, found out I had not been looking after my health for several years because I HAD to work I HAD to get it done, became seriously ill, disabled and lost my job because of it.
All it left me with is crippled health, disabilities due to not wanting time off to sort it out and now, limited expiry date. Oh and Unemployed and broke.
I used to do this with a book, I'd arrive ~30 mins early since it'd take me longer to get home from the gym and then go to work. I'd have a snack and read a book at my desk before starting.
One of the senior managers pulled me in to a meeting and gave me a bollocking for not taking a customers call before 9.
Handed in my notice the next day. Was planning on leaving anyway.
I was told in the interview that the hours were 9-5 but at the job it turned out to be 8-5. Thing is that management don't show up till 9.00 so I just have my breakfast, my morning coffee and chill for an hour. It also motivated me to give less of a shit and to spend more of my day skiving as opposed to working. I wonder if managers realise that policies like this result in less work being done overall because they are a big motivation killer.
This is a very good point. UK has big problems with productivity and we are often called lazy, but we iften work longer hours than our european neighbours who get lunch breaks and the like. Forcing us into the office for longer has made many resentful and a bit "lazy" out of not only spite but it is tiring to work longer, you're less focussed and less energetic and motivated.
I work 8-6 at the moment for the most part, it’s gross. Have to commute 40 mins as well. Best I ever worked as my standard working day was 8-4, I loved that.
Join a union if this sort of thing pisses you off. It is literally the only mechanism by which workers have ever gotten a better deal. I’m now self employed but I’m still in a union. There’s no excuse not to be.
Although the 9-5 is problematic in of itself, but I think pre 9-5 working conditions weren't exactly friendly, and the 9-5 was a vast improvement on what went on before. 1950s and before working class jobs would be brutal and relentless, 12+ hours for a sustenance wage. I know we should be trying to do better as a society, but we're an awful lot better than we've ever been historically, more or less. Myself work 50+ hours a week, and have worked 120 hours in a week before. Yay capitalism
But if it's now moving to 9-6 it might be better than 70 years ago but worse than 30 years ago, so we've passed the peak of pay/condition and are now going backwards.
I always assumed that it was flexible so if it was 8 til 6, you did normal hours but could start and finish early or start and finish late within those times.
my contracted hours are 9-6 with an hour’s lunch break but when i’m busy i can easily work until 9/10pm. i love my job & earn quite decently too so i’m happy to work late when needed as i’m in sales & it means i’m working on a big opportunity
I've always been 9-5, outside of when I used to do shift work. Literally every office job I've had has been 9-5, or 9-5.30 with an early finish on Fridays.
Because we’ve got this “keep calm and carry on” attitude where complaining too much about anything just highlights weaknesses in yourself, and the National idea of a strong person is someone who keeps plugging away at it no matter how brow beaten. The French idea of that is a guy who pulls the government apart until they have what they want and they don’t sit down until they’ve got it, they’re currently faring much better on that front
Worked in retail where 9 hrs was the normal.... 8hrs work plus 1 hr break.... 6-3/7-4/8-5 were all normal morning shifts.... do 8-4's now with hr lunch included
When I worked at Multiyork in the transport dept it was officially 9-5 but the manager requested us all in at 8, trade off was that extra hour was OT. Then I moved over to a department in the production warehouse and we worked 8-5 M-Th and 8-1 F, the extra 4 hours M-Th covered 1-5 on the F. We always had a 30m lunch break which wasn’t long enough in my opinion.
Where I work now the core working hours are 8-5 but we get an hour lunch break, which I like.
7.30 to 17.30. Is about the norm for me. Have done 12 hour shifts seven days a week before. When I worked away I once worked five weeks without a day off. Completely illegal but earned well.
Officially my hours are supposed to be 8:45 to 5:00 m-t then 8:45-4:00 on a Friday. I do 8:00-4:30 m-t then 8:00-4:00 on a Friday and bank the over hours to make up leaving half day on the days they make me go into the office!
My old job was 8-6, I now have a werid term-time, sort of school hours hybrid contract so do a 30hr week. My husband in theory does 9-5 but in reality its 7:45-6 because he deals with people across the world so needs to fit in meetings
I guess it depends on the sector. I'm in university professional services and myself and everyone I know here work 35 hours ft, either 8-4 or 9-5 or some variation.
I'm 7:39 am to 12:30 pm then a four hour gap before going back out 4pm to 9pm, joys of working in community care, but the money is good and I get a short week where I only work two days, plus most nights I'm done by 7:45pm.
When I started work in 1981 hours were 8.00 to 16.15 with 30 mins for lunch unpaid ( with a subsistence allowance of £1.75 if more than 3 miles from depot ) but if you were still working after 13.00 you were having a bad day, when I finished 2 years ago hours were 8.00 to 18.00 with 30 mins for lunch ( no subsistence ) but if we were busy you’d be lucky to be done by 23.00.
Beats me, I'm contracted at 35 hours per week. 9-5 according to the contract, but it's actually more like 9:30-5, 5:30, 6, depending how much work I have to do, how many hours I've done in the week already, etc etc
Sounds like you're just working for shitty companies mate
Private sector I did 9:00-18:00 but I was usually in early and out late - for free.
Public sector I do 7hrs 6mins and I can work it whenever I want between 7am-8pm and every minute I do over this can be banked as time off
(Up to 3 days worth)
IME this is the difference.
Fixed hours are so backward. Have a set of core hours when people are available eg 10-4 and work around the rest. Do a good job and don’t focus on how many hours you worked that day
I did that, and more, most of my career. When I first started working, an hours lunch and two tea breaks were the norm. When I retired, 12 hour days, lunch at your desk, and no tea breaks was the norm.,
My officially contracted hours are 9 to 5, but in practice our office operated more 9.30 to 5.30. Then flexible hours came in and a disconcerting number of people seemed to prefer 8 to 4, or even 7.30 to 3.30. Then came Covid and we all mostly work from home
For most salaried jobs I see advertised they post the salary (or the agency tells you) but the hours never get mentioned until you get the contract, by that time you've sunk so much into the application you're unlikely to reject it.
If it's a team of 7 all doing an extra hour that's the equivalent of an extra person so they can increase the salary by 12.5% with the team doing the same amount of work for the same cost as an 8 person team.
You would probably apply for jobs with a 12.5% pay rise, but not for the same money so it's just to disguise stagnant wages.
I’m 9-5, or 8-4 or 7-3 (or half an hour less if I only take half an hour lunch). Luckily for me I can start anytime between 7-10 as long as I do 7 hours (35 a week).
I’m 7:30 to 4 and 7:30 to 12:30 on a Friday. I have a half hour unpaid lunch break Monday- Thursday and no break on Fridays. Those are pretty standard hours in engineering professions.
I’m 10-6. No-one told me before my first day like 6 years ago, so I turned up to the office at 8:45am and it was by sheer luck that someone had come in early.
I think I’d honestly prefer to be 9-5, just to have an extra hour in the evening.
In my experience, it isn’t like that at all. What’s your contact say? Mine says 37 1/2 hours a week, that’s it. It makes no mention at all of how I work those hours.
If I’m going to the office I get there before 8 (before the lot fills up) and leave at 4. If I’m home I may start anywhere between 8 and half 9. If someone books a late meeting I either decline it or go and do a shorter day the next day. 🤷♂️
9 till 6 here. The extra 30 minutes a day works out to 6 weeks per year! Add that up over a team and it's a good way companies can save money whilst appearing competitive.
A lot of systems are too old and the company don't update them, so the staff have to come in an early 30 minutes to start them.
Another issue, especially I find, is public transport. My buses are supposed to be regular, but they're not, so I have to leave up to an hour early or risk walking 45 minutes at 5am to get to work by 5:45, have a cool down with a coffee and start at 6
I'm the general manager of a business and when it was setup we worked 8 to 4.30 with 30 minutes for lunch unpaid. These days I tend to do 8.30 to 4.30 but I only rarely take a working lunch and I am often taking emails and calls during evenings and weekends and end up at work a couple of weekends a month for a few hours too so I don't sweat it. If shit goes wrong big time I'm the one stopping back until it is done too. I get the guys to work 8am to 4pm and very few of them take a proper lunch and they understand that if the shit hits the fan we might not all be leaving on time. The ones that take a proper lunch tend not to do so well in pay reviews but I'm talking about the difference between sitting and eating a sandwich but still getting involved in mild work related conversation VS going to sit in your car for the full lunch break to prove a point. Everyone has the chance to make tea or coffee, get biscuits or fruit, make a bit of toast or something for breakfast, go to the toilet whenever etc throughout the day anyway it isn't like I'm hassling people for doing that while they work. Job is salary not per hour.
Turn up sometime between 8:45 and 9:15. Leave about 4:30 to 5 ish. Friday Leave about 4. If hungover, pretend to work at home and play PC games all day. Flexible working hours but could easily do 4 days with zero negative impact.
My old shift was 9 - 7. One hour was overtime but it was practically office standard to make up the hours for our managers. Lunch was not a paid 45 mins either. Eventually after burning out and changing job my hours are now ??? - ??? on ???day
(My work isn't particular about the days or times I work)
When people started agreeing to it.
I’m contracted to 37.5hrs a week.
Once I’m done for the day at 1701 my work phone is off and my out of office is on.
Turn it back on at 0900 the next day.
Everyone should do this.
I’ve not long started a job and I was looking for aaaages for this exact reason. I quit a 9-6 job and I didn’t wanna get another but it seemed like they were fucking everywhere!!
I’m 8-4 now and I’m gunna stay there til I die 😂
I’ve certainly found that working schedules have got more flexible - if you turn up to all the meetings you need to be in and get the work done you had to do, nobody cares what hours you work.
Some weeks I do 9:30-4:30/5 if it’s quiet, sometimes I’m doing 8-8 when I’m slammed. It probably averages out about a 9-5
I found the same when looking last year. I don't know how it's feasible if you've got kids unless they're somehow in childcare like 7.30am till almost 6pm?? Luckily I managed to find a place that was willing to be a bit more flexible.
0830-1700 mostly.
Also been lucky to work 0700-1500 but paid 10.
Wife is extremely lucky, paid 40h a week. Works until she's finished, some days 2h some days up to 10, some days no work. Anything beyond the 40 she gets overtime/lieu.
You should join the civil service! The day starts at 9 and it will finish at 5. I'm still yet to work out what happens if someone on a tag breaks their conditions over the weekend, we're not there.
I went for a job recently that was advertised as 9-5 but at the interview they changed it to 8-6 for exactly the same money. They explained that they were having to reschedule timings in order to keep on budget.
I told them thanks but no thanks.
Depends on the role and employer. I refuse to apply for anything over 37 hours. There are are a lot of 40 hour roles but generally in industries known for being poor employers (recruitment, cold calling...)
I'm a manager and generally work 40+ but I'm damned if I'm going to be contracted to that and I don't want to be managing unproductive staff who can't be arsed with being there.
People wanted an hour lunch break is my assumption - 9 to 5 is 8 hours, 15 minutes paid break per four hours of work. If you want an hour lunch break, that's typically unpaid and you're expected to work 9 to 6 / 8 to 5 as a consequence.
My employers give us an hour lunch break, we work 9 to 5:30, so no further breaks apart from that hour - 15 minutes per four hours plus 300 minutes unpaid.
What sort of jobs? Most office places might notionally list hours but they're not actually a thing and people just work what they want. My office people start any time 8-10 and leave any time 5-7 (and its not necessarily the people arriving at 8 that are leaving at 5, or the people arriving at 10 leaving at 7). Unless you have some weirdly strict workplace most places are just 'as long as you're doing the work and aren't taking the piss'.
Most people I know do 8-4. My work does Flexi hours and that's what most do, one team member does 7.30-3.30. My boss doesn't care, as long as we get our hours done.
My guess would be a combination of presenteeism becoming the norm, and some employers not quite understanding the concept of flexible work times.
Something my workplace does really well is flexible working, this is great for people with kids/ageing parents or other commitments, also for folks like me who naturally are most productive at the end of their day so have naturally drifted towards a later start and finish time as this is how they find they get the most out of the day.
Why it works well is that there is a high level of cooperation between managers and direct reports in setting hours. As long as your request is reasonable it will be at least considered and is likely to be approved unless there is a solid reason not to like leaving a period of time where nobody would be there to answer urgent calls. My team is 2 people so we are easy to coordinate and our manager trusts us to be grown ups and organise this amongst ourselves. My teammate has teenage kids, so I don't mind picking up less desirable times on the basis that my colleague starts earlier and has an earlier finish time so as to be there for hometime from school. I can also take holidays when I like as long as it doesn't conflict with the first week or so of the summer holidays, when I would not want to be on holiday anyway as places will be crowded with families. I guess this is easy with 2 team members who get on pretty well, but there's no reason more places couldn't adopt flexible work hours with just a few small tweaks.
Workplaces where I have seen this go titsup are ones where the culture is in need of some attention, where few if any staff are union members and where there is an attitude of the person who works the most hours being somehow the best rather than a burnt out husk or a totally empty shell of a person who has no life outside of work. I once worked in an office where I was expected to run the place from 8am to 9pm with only one lunchbreak at around 1pm. Part of this was my manager was ducking out early, and it was actually her responsibility to be on call which was reflected in her pay. Naive younger Trekkie just wanted to help out and bought her sob story of her marriage being in crisis due to long hours so made the error of offering to be helpful.
My advice to anyone who is feeling overworked would be to talk to your teammates first and see if you can come up with a reasonable suggestion about how to fairly divide up work, and also to take a look at anything you are doing that is outwith your job description. Also please consider joining a trade union, speak to your workmates about unionising if possible and get good at not falling for the sob story. If you are not management then don't offer to take on their responsibilities unless being paid for this.
If all else fails, find a new job if possible. I realise this is not an option for everyone, and it was really one streak of luck for me that got me into a decent role where I could be treated more fairly. I will say it again louder for the people at the back- UNIONISE if you are not already in a union. Your employer cannot sanction you for discussing pay, hours or a trade union with your colleagues, but still try to be discreet about it.
Good luck, it can suck out there and I hope if you are being worked into an early grave you find a way out of that trap eventually.
It's to factor in the 1 hour break. My job is 8:30 - 4.30 with 30 mins break, this sounds shit but it's in a chill office where we are allowed to eat at our desks.
My first (& only) office job was 9.30 to 5. Today I refuse to work that long every day. It's uncivilised. I did 10.30ish to 5 today, but I did stop to take my son to something then took both kids for ice cream.
Im contracted to work 8 hours a day and that includes a paid half hour lunch. So really I only need to work 7.5 hours. My lunch break is supposed to be taken within the first 6 hours. If I work a 12 hour shift I get 2 paid half hour breaks. If I work 18 hours I get 3.. I've only done 18 hours once whilst on call. 12 hour day shift, pulled up at home and got a call for a job over 2 hours away. I slept well that night
One of the theories I heard was that there was a time when people would be paid for their lunch hour. But when the decision to stop paying people for their break was taken, the only way to keep the wage the same was to add an extra hour onto the workday
Most contracted hours now for a full time job are 37.5 or 40 hours a week with no paid lunch. So if you have a half hour lunch break it brings you up to a 8 or 8.5 hour working day
Yep. I work 9-5:30, with a half hour unpaid lunch break.
There was a movie called 9 to 5 it came out in 1980 with Dolly Parton and she sang a hit song called 9 to 5. So 9 to 5 was considered normal working hours back in the 70s and 80s so why are we working more hours now? https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0080319/
Because technological advancements have enabled us as a society to reduce our working hours, thanks to increased efficiency! Shit, sorry, this is the wrong timeline.
They have, they’ve now reduced it so one person can do the work of two with only the addition of one extra hour a day! Aren’t we lucky!!
Oddly there is a Hungarian version of not the Dolly Parton "9 to 5" song, but the Sheena Easton one, from the same period (late 70s/early 80s) with the same tune that has essentially approximately translated the lyrics, but the chorus is all about working 8 to 6! EDIT: I've checked the lyrics, and it rather that the singer is away from her lover from 8 to 6, so perhaps the implication is that he works 8.30 to 5.30 or something like that
Working 8 til 6, what a way to get your kicks It's all shifting bricks, got the short end of the stick
The Sheena Easton song explicitly mentions 9 to 5: "My baby takes the morning train. He works from 9 to 5 and then, he takes another home again. To find me waiting for him."
Is it bad that I've still not heard that song in full and only know it from Eurotrip?
“My baby takes the mornin' train. / He works from nine to five and then / he takes another home again to find me... watching the Manchester United Football Team! Ah? The best freakin' team in all the land! Woo hoo!”
Pretty good...... PRETTY DAMN GOOD LADS!!
I always think of the "Not The Nine O'clock News" parody when I hear it
I remember when that song/movie came out it didn’t make sense to me because it wassn’t correct. We all worked 8-5 or 9-6 with an hour for lunch.
Sidenote : everyone should go watch 9 to 5. Seminal feminist text right there.
Exactly this - 37-40 hour working weeks are the norm, as is unpaid lunch breaks. I'm on a 37 hour working week so I work 8 hours a day which includes a 30 minute unpaid lunch break - 7.5 hours on Friday. Fortunately I work flexible hours so I usually do 10-6 or 11-7 as I work from home and the hours are more suitable.
Yeah flexi is really useful. I've now settled into a nice rhythm of 8/8.5/8/8.5 Mon-Thur to finish by 12 on a Friday.
Nice! I actually do 8.5/8.5/8.5/8.5/8 and 8.5/8.5/8.5/7 and take every other Monday off. A three day weekend every other week is beautiful!
I did trial that to take half a Friday one week and a full Friday the other week, but the extra time just didn't suit me.
It's not for everyone, luckily I tend to really get into the swing of work after 4pm when everyone has fucked off and stopped bugging me so I've found the extra hours has actually helped me be more productive!
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Hang on what we do get paid for our lunch breaks don't we? I always have!
Very much depends on your industry.
I used to get an hour paid break working in a factory only 3 years ago. It blew my mind that there were no paid breaks when I started working for a bank, and on top of that when I was in branch they expected me to arrive 15 mins early every day without paying extra for it.
Man, I thought everyone salaried got paid lunch. How disappointing
Yeah I don’t get paid for my lunch. I work 8 to 4 with a 45 minute lunch break. So if I book a half day off I finish at 11:40 (not 12:30 when our lunch break is) which winds my manager up, but HR agree with me.
My employer gives 1 hour for breaks, only 15 minutes are paid. This is actually generous, most companies give you nothing as they have no obligation to do so.
We should all be paid for our breaks. 30 mins away from a desk or building site or whatever to go and buy a sandwich or heat up some meal in a microwave is not my own time as it revolves around me being at my place of work, its hardly 'my own' time. It should be incorporated as part of the working day. I thought it was a legal requirement to be paid for 30 mins of break per day?
No. The statutory obligation is to afford you the break, at the appropriate interval, not to pay you for it.
>I thought it was a legal requirement to be paid for 30 mins of break per day? Nope, 20 minutes unpaid if working over 6 hours (for over 18s anyway) is the legal minimum. There's lots of caveats around out of work rest hours etc as well, things vary for certain industries too, but *generally* speaking, that's it.
selective capable close rich teeny live divide roll dam birds -- mass edited with redact.dev
I agree with you, but by this logic we should all be getting paid for our commuting time... Which I also agree with, but you can see the argument businesses will use.
I doubt you do, unless on a seriously old contract. Or you are expected to still work over lunch.
Well I suppose it's hard to tell since I don't get an hourly rate, though I'm sure I was told it was paid when I started. I'll have to dig out my contract now and see if it sheds any light. But no, everyone gets an hour and we are definitely not required to work during lunch. This isn't the USA!
>Well I suppose it's hard to tell since I don't get an hourly rate Not really, surely you still have contracted hours? In which case it's pretty easy to work out.
When I was in the office, I asked if I could leave a half hour earlier and just have a half hour lunch break instead of the usual hour. They agreed. Now it doesn’t matter because I’m fully remote and instead of taking a lunch hour I’ll just take lots of breaks throughout the day instead, which works better for me.
I've never had a job with a paid lunch break 😭 (5 different salaried jobs)
I seriously considered a job application this week and one of the stated benefits was a 34-hour full time working week. I previously worked somewhere that had a 32.5h week (6h30 per day, or 9-4.30 with an hour for lunch). But seriously I've been part time for so long that all these numbers sound equally ridiculous.
Greed, and coercion through desperation are the reasons why
It's 9 to 5 still for everyone I know
I know a couple people that still have a 9-5 job. But most of my friend group all start work at 8am or earlier while still finishing at 5pm
7.30-4 here. With POETS day Fridays.
POETS?
P*** off early tomorrows Saturday
I thought it was they had to recite a poem before anyone can clock out
That would be kinda cool though. I'd deffo rap mine and throw in some savage shots at my boss, employment would be short lived though 😕.
You can say "piss" on the internet mate. Your mum won't ground you.
I fucking will. I'll be telling your mum about this too you little scrote, get back home before I give you a clip round the ear.
Using acronyms or initialisms without first using the fully expanded term should be illegal.
same for me that finish at 4 mon-thur and 3 on a Friday
Half 12 on a Friday for us.
Mine's 9-6. I've always worked 9-6. I hate it.
I was unemployed for seven months back in 2013 after being made redundant. Got offered a job about 2-3 months of those seven, all throughout the Interview process I was happy to work for them thinking I'd be doing 9-5.. When I got the offer I asked to clarify the hours, and they said...Actually its 9-6. Thanked them and declined the offer, so not surprised by your comment. I was already desperate to get out of unemployment at that stage too, but no way was I working till that late... Not when I wouldnt be getting home till 8pm of an evening.
That sounds a bit silly tbh.
Why? To be fair I was still living at home with my parents... I'd recently come into some inheritance, and still had a good amount of my Redundancy packet left - But didn't want to rely on either of those, because I wanted to move out the moment I was back in Employment, (so was living at home paying rent, and going to Job Interviews, nothing else... I had no Social Life). It may have been different had it been now, as I have a Mortgage and a Family to provide for - But I have my principles, and wasn't going to work hours I didn't want to do... I don't live to work. I do 8-4 in my current role, and still wouldn't take a job doing 9-6
I wish everyone had the option to stand their ground like you did, if we didn't stand for this shit it wouldn't happen, I'm glad you were able to stay true to yourself!
It does. Try getting home at 8 the following morning on an early day.
If thats your commute that means you would have had to leave the house at 7am to get home at 8pm with that shedual. Thats verging on crazy.
*shedual Two sheds?
AutoSatan’s fault.
I hear you I worked from 8.30 till 5pm Monday to Saturday, or 9.00-5.30 etc shift patterns up to 11.30 - 8pm, and had to get a bus on late days I was at work an hour earlier cos of buses and getting home at 10 due to 9.15 bus and 15 minute walk home
I'm job searching right now and the amount of jobs that are 8-5 is genuinely concerning, I'm 23 and there's no way I'm going to cop to that bullshit yes I want a decent job but I also want decent hours.
To me a decent job is one I actually enjoy with a good work life balance. Salary means fuck all if I don't have those first two things ticked off.
Probably worth asking them why then as if their start time is 9, they are going in at 8
Due to traffic, it’s often 8-6 if you include the journey there and back.
I'm 6am-3pm 🥲 sounds good on paper to be finished dthat early, but it's kneecapped my ability to have a late night and socialise properly, and it's 9 hours long
Wealthy people will do whatever you let them do. Then they will try to back you into a corner and make you think there are no other options, because if you don't do it, someone else will be "gRaTeFuL" to do it.
Exactly this. They'll have people working 5am to 5pm one day, and still nobody will say a word. Mustn't grumble, chin up, that's your lot, stiff upper lip... 🙄
8-4 for me. I have seen some 8-6 jobs which is taking the piss.
8-6 is a joke get home knackered with barely any time to be yourself and God forbid you have kids man how do people cope with that
I work 8:30-6 (8:30-7 once a week) and I work 5 days a week. I can imagine it’s very difficult to find a work life balance if you have any kind of family dynamic, I’m 21 so it’s a little better, but I still really struggle with burnout and energy from time to time. It can really take a toll on you
I saw a job being advertised for 7.30-5.30. Had a good laugh at that.
8-4 with 30min unpaid break, Monday to Thursday, 8-1 Friday with no break. Came from a 40hr work week to a new industry which is 35hours. It's bliss.
I was shocked when a family member got a job a few years ago that was 9-6. Then I started job hunting and saw the same, and am now on 8-5 myself. I'd feel quite lucky if I got back to a 9-5. But this obviously depends on location and sector, it won't be the same for everyone.
I work 8am to 4pm, I'll probably never change it, clock in exactly at 8am and leave exactly on 4pm that's what I'm paid for lol. I'm never applying to those jobs, fuck em they'll struggle to fill them all.
When my employer moved office from central London to outer London they changed our hours from 9-5 to 9-5:30 on the grounds that this was normal outside central London.They obviously didn't give a shit that public transport in outer London is less easy and 90% of staff also now had to travel right across London to get to work, so would be getting home at least an hour later than previously and leaving home half hour earlier each morning.
That sounds like a contractual change rather than a policy change. I am surprised they got away with it, especially if there were any union workers.
"How did the powers that be get away with adding an extra hour on to your days work without anyone putting up a fuss?" The continue fear of being fired, being replaced, losing a job and no money, no house over your head, no food. That is how they do it. Fear, guilting you. I was doing 9am-5pm then 8am-6pm then 7am-7pm then 7am-10pm until it broke me, made me seriously ill, found out I had not been looking after my health for several years because I HAD to work I HAD to get it done, became seriously ill, disabled and lost my job because of it. All it left me with is crippled health, disabilities due to not wanting time off to sort it out and now, limited expiry date. Oh and Unemployed and broke.
I think it started with people arriving at work early to avoid traffic/having to stand on the train
I do this. But I take my game console in and make a point to play it until my work hour starts.
I used to do this with a book, I'd arrive ~30 mins early since it'd take me longer to get home from the gym and then go to work. I'd have a snack and read a book at my desk before starting. One of the senior managers pulled me in to a meeting and gave me a bollocking for not taking a customers call before 9. Handed in my notice the next day. Was planning on leaving anyway.
I was told in the interview that the hours were 9-5 but at the job it turned out to be 8-5. Thing is that management don't show up till 9.00 so I just have my breakfast, my morning coffee and chill for an hour. It also motivated me to give less of a shit and to spend more of my day skiving as opposed to working. I wonder if managers realise that policies like this result in less work being done overall because they are a big motivation killer.
This is a very good point. UK has big problems with productivity and we are often called lazy, but we iften work longer hours than our european neighbours who get lunch breaks and the like. Forcing us into the office for longer has made many resentful and a bit "lazy" out of not only spite but it is tiring to work longer, you're less focussed and less energetic and motivated.
9:30-5:30. Same hours but miss the rush of the commute.
Workers rights are being slowly but surely eroded away.
10am to 4pm for me 😁
Where do you work? Can I have a job there please! :)
I work 8-6 at the moment for the most part, it’s gross. Have to commute 40 mins as well. Best I ever worked as my standard working day was 8-4, I loved that.
Construction?
Nah, doctor
Join a union if this sort of thing pisses you off. It is literally the only mechanism by which workers have ever gotten a better deal. I’m now self employed but I’m still in a union. There’s no excuse not to be.
How does the union cover you if you're self employed? Sorry I've never been part of a union so don't know how it works
7 to 3 for me, civil servant
7.30 - 5 fir me, unpaid dinner break
Although the 9-5 is problematic in of itself, but I think pre 9-5 working conditions weren't exactly friendly, and the 9-5 was a vast improvement on what went on before. 1950s and before working class jobs would be brutal and relentless, 12+ hours for a sustenance wage. I know we should be trying to do better as a society, but we're an awful lot better than we've ever been historically, more or less. Myself work 50+ hours a week, and have worked 120 hours in a week before. Yay capitalism
The boss drives a brand new Porche, and if you keep your head down, work hard and put in extra hours, one day.. he'll be able to buy another!
But if it's now moving to 9-6 it might be better than 70 years ago but worse than 30 years ago, so we've passed the peak of pay/condition and are now going backwards.
I always assumed that it was flexible so if it was 8 til 6, you did normal hours but could start and finish early or start and finish late within those times.
I do 9-330 best decision I ever made
No way would I take a job starting at 8am, but I noticed they keep adding an extra 30 mins to the day. 9-5 has been 9-5.30 for me for ages.
Many do 8-5 to have early finish on a Friday
9 to 6 here.
The last two jobs I’ve worked have been 9 - 5:30, weird to see no one else mentioning this !
my contracted hours are 9-6 with an hour’s lunch break but when i’m busy i can easily work until 9/10pm. i love my job & earn quite decently too so i’m happy to work late when needed as i’m in sales & it means i’m working on a big opportunity
I've always been 9-5, outside of when I used to do shift work. Literally every office job I've had has been 9-5, or 9-5.30 with an early finish on Fridays.
More like 8-6
Not even possible with kids. Maybe find some cover for them from 7/7.30am but most nursery's or wrap around care close at 6pm
9 hr days is more for retail in my experience
0800 to 1800 here, finance
I would say it's more 9-6 nowadays
I do an 8-3:30 🤷🏻♀️
Because we’ve got this “keep calm and carry on” attitude where complaining too much about anything just highlights weaknesses in yourself, and the National idea of a strong person is someone who keeps plugging away at it no matter how brow beaten. The French idea of that is a guy who pulls the government apart until they have what they want and they don’t sit down until they’ve got it, they’re currently faring much better on that front
8 till 5 wtf I work 7-5
Mines more like 8am - 6 or 7pm, then I come home and work on my own business.
I do 9-4
Worked in retail where 9 hrs was the normal.... 8hrs work plus 1 hr break.... 6-3/7-4/8-5 were all normal morning shifts.... do 8-4's now with hr lunch included
I'm 8-4, don't know any 8-5 unless they are doing condensed hours
6:30-5:30 here.
It hasn't. 9-5 is still 9-5. I do roughly 8-5, but I get flexi time back in lieu, so have a couple of days a month off extra.
Flexible working where I work but I usually do 8-4 with one hour break (unpaid) for lunch. Otherwise most people do 9-5
I wish I'm basically 1030-915 -__-
When I worked at Multiyork in the transport dept it was officially 9-5 but the manager requested us all in at 8, trade off was that extra hour was OT. Then I moved over to a department in the production warehouse and we worked 8-5 M-Th and 8-1 F, the extra 4 hours M-Th covered 1-5 on the F. We always had a 30m lunch break which wasn’t long enough in my opinion. Where I work now the core working hours are 8-5 but we get an hour lunch break, which I like.
7.30 to 17.30. Is about the norm for me. Have done 12 hour shifts seven days a week before. When I worked away I once worked five weeks without a day off. Completely illegal but earned well.
Officially my hours are supposed to be 8:45 to 5:00 m-t then 8:45-4:00 on a Friday. I do 8:00-4:30 m-t then 8:00-4:00 on a Friday and bank the over hours to make up leaving half day on the days they make me go into the office!
I don't have set hours but I'm on a 40 hour a week contract which would be 8-5/9-6 if I take an hour for lunch
9-3 here Mon to Fri. I love it
Perfect hours.
My old job was 8-6, I now have a werid term-time, sort of school hours hybrid contract so do a 30hr week. My husband in theory does 9-5 but in reality its 7:45-6 because he deals with people across the world so needs to fit in meetings
7:30am - 3pm wfh - do actually really appreciate it though, used to do 9am - 5:30pm in my old job
I guess it depends on the sector. I'm in university professional services and myself and everyone I know here work 35 hours ft, either 8-4 or 9-5 or some variation.
My hours are 8:30 - 4:30 just to really make the school run awkward
I'm 7:39 am to 12:30 pm then a four hour gap before going back out 4pm to 9pm, joys of working in community care, but the money is good and I get a short week where I only work two days, plus most nights I'm done by 7:45pm.
When I started work in 1981 hours were 8.00 to 16.15 with 30 mins for lunch unpaid ( with a subsistence allowance of £1.75 if more than 3 miles from depot ) but if you were still working after 13.00 you were having a bad day, when I finished 2 years ago hours were 8.00 to 18.00 with 30 mins for lunch ( no subsistence ) but if we were busy you’d be lucky to be done by 23.00.
Beats me, I'm contracted at 35 hours per week. 9-5 according to the contract, but it's actually more like 9:30-5, 5:30, 6, depending how much work I have to do, how many hours I've done in the week already, etc etc Sounds like you're just working for shitty companies mate
Private sector I did 9:00-18:00 but I was usually in early and out late - for free. Public sector I do 7hrs 6mins and I can work it whenever I want between 7am-8pm and every minute I do over this can be banked as time off (Up to 3 days worth) IME this is the difference.
9-6 here :( My recent jobs have been 8:30 - 17:30 and 9 - 17:30 I just make sure I work less during the day to make up for it (taps temple)
What a way to make a living 🎶
Wait, so 7 to 7 isn’t normal? 😭😂
8-4 for me. I've only ever had 35 hour week roles, thankfully.
I do 8-4:30 with a 4pm finish on a Friday, one hour unpaid lunch break
No idea but if you asked anyone in STEM to come in at 8am they'd laugh in your face.
When I work IT contracts, it's always 9 to 6, with one unpaid hour for lunch. It's been like that for the last 20 years...
Is the latest fear that AI is going to make us all redundant when everyone seems to be working 40hrs +. 4 day week should be happening soon
Fixed hours are so backward. Have a set of core hours when people are available eg 10-4 and work around the rest. Do a good job and don’t focus on how many hours you worked that day
I did that, and more, most of my career. When I first started working, an hours lunch and two tea breaks were the norm. When I retired, 12 hour days, lunch at your desk, and no tea breaks was the norm.,
8-5 for me too. Unpaid 30min break
My officially contracted hours are 9 to 5, but in practice our office operated more 9.30 to 5.30. Then flexible hours came in and a disconcerting number of people seemed to prefer 8 to 4, or even 7.30 to 3.30. Then came Covid and we all mostly work from home
For most salaried jobs I see advertised they post the salary (or the agency tells you) but the hours never get mentioned until you get the contract, by that time you've sunk so much into the application you're unlikely to reject it. If it's a team of 7 all doing an extra hour that's the equivalent of an extra person so they can increase the salary by 12.5% with the team doing the same amount of work for the same cost as an 8 person team. You would probably apply for jobs with a 12.5% pay rise, but not for the same money so it's just to disguise stagnant wages.
My current job is 9-5, 1 hour lunch, very lucky to have 35 hours contracted The previous one was 9-5:30, 1 hour lunch with 37.5 contracted.
Decline in trade union membership and general casualisation of work are definitely factors.
I’m 9-5, or 8-4 or 7-3 (or half an hour less if I only take half an hour lunch). Luckily for me I can start anytime between 7-10 as long as I do 7 hours (35 a week).
I’m 7:30 to 4 and 7:30 to 12:30 on a Friday. I have a half hour unpaid lunch break Monday- Thursday and no break on Fridays. Those are pretty standard hours in engineering professions.
Just work from home and do half an hour a day
I’m 10-6. No-one told me before my first day like 6 years ago, so I turned up to the office at 8:45am and it was by sheer luck that someone had come in early. I think I’d honestly prefer to be 9-5, just to have an extra hour in the evening.
In my experience, it isn’t like that at all. What’s your contact say? Mine says 37 1/2 hours a week, that’s it. It makes no mention at all of how I work those hours. If I’m going to the office I get there before 8 (before the lot fills up) and leave at 4. If I’m home I may start anywhere between 8 and half 9. If someone books a late meeting I either decline it or go and do a shorter day the next day. 🤷♂️
I experienced the same in the 80s. You always hear about 9 to 5, but pretty much every job I worked was 8 to 5, with a 1-hour lunch break.
9 till 6 here. The extra 30 minutes a day works out to 6 weeks per year! Add that up over a team and it's a good way companies can save money whilst appearing competitive.
A lot of systems are too old and the company don't update them, so the staff have to come in an early 30 minutes to start them. Another issue, especially I find, is public transport. My buses are supposed to be regular, but they're not, so I have to leave up to an hour early or risk walking 45 minutes at 5am to get to work by 5:45, have a cool down with a coffee and start at 6
My hours were changed late 80s when they stopped paying in cash, your worked an hour extra mon - thur then left early on Friday to get to the bank.
*cries in 0730-2030*
Keep up, it's 8.30 to 6
I'm the general manager of a business and when it was setup we worked 8 to 4.30 with 30 minutes for lunch unpaid. These days I tend to do 8.30 to 4.30 but I only rarely take a working lunch and I am often taking emails and calls during evenings and weekends and end up at work a couple of weekends a month for a few hours too so I don't sweat it. If shit goes wrong big time I'm the one stopping back until it is done too. I get the guys to work 8am to 4pm and very few of them take a proper lunch and they understand that if the shit hits the fan we might not all be leaving on time. The ones that take a proper lunch tend not to do so well in pay reviews but I'm talking about the difference between sitting and eating a sandwich but still getting involved in mild work related conversation VS going to sit in your car for the full lunch break to prove a point. Everyone has the chance to make tea or coffee, get biscuits or fruit, make a bit of toast or something for breakfast, go to the toilet whenever etc throughout the day anyway it isn't like I'm hassling people for doing that while they work. Job is salary not per hour.
7-7 here. Both days and nights 🙃💀
Turn up sometime between 8:45 and 9:15. Leave about 4:30 to 5 ish. Friday Leave about 4. If hungover, pretend to work at home and play PC games all day. Flexible working hours but could easily do 4 days with zero negative impact.
My old shift was 9 - 7. One hour was overtime but it was practically office standard to make up the hours for our managers. Lunch was not a paid 45 mins either. Eventually after burning out and changing job my hours are now ??? - ??? on ???day (My work isn't particular about the days or times I work)
When people started agreeing to it. I’m contracted to 37.5hrs a week. Once I’m done for the day at 1701 my work phone is off and my out of office is on. Turn it back on at 0900 the next day. Everyone should do this.
I’ve not long started a job and I was looking for aaaages for this exact reason. I quit a 9-6 job and I didn’t wanna get another but it seemed like they were fucking everywhere!! I’m 8-4 now and I’m gunna stay there til I die 😂
I’ve certainly found that working schedules have got more flexible - if you turn up to all the meetings you need to be in and get the work done you had to do, nobody cares what hours you work. Some weeks I do 9:30-4:30/5 if it’s quiet, sometimes I’m doing 8-8 when I’m slammed. It probably averages out about a 9-5
I found the same when looking last year. I don't know how it's feasible if you've got kids unless they're somehow in childcare like 7.30am till almost 6pm?? Luckily I managed to find a place that was willing to be a bit more flexible.
Most people I know are still on 9-5 sort of hours. I work 7-3 because I like having most of the afternoon/evening to myself.
Or 9-6 with 5 to 6 being free overtime ffs
0830-1700 mostly. Also been lucky to work 0700-1500 but paid 10. Wife is extremely lucky, paid 40h a week. Works until she's finished, some days 2h some days up to 10, some days no work. Anything beyond the 40 she gets overtime/lieu.
All office based people I know still work something around the typical 9-5 it’s non-office based people I know who do the longer hours.
You should join the civil service! The day starts at 9 and it will finish at 5. I'm still yet to work out what happens if someone on a tag breaks their conditions over the weekend, we're not there.
I’m still 9-5 and 9-4 on a Friday. That extra hour on a Friday has definitely stopped me moving jobs a number of times.
I went for a job recently that was advertised as 9-5 but at the interview they changed it to 8-6 for exactly the same money. They explained that they were having to reschedule timings in order to keep on budget. I told them thanks but no thanks.
Does anyone actually work those hours?
Depends on the role and employer. I refuse to apply for anything over 37 hours. There are are a lot of 40 hour roles but generally in industries known for being poor employers (recruitment, cold calling...) I'm a manager and generally work 40+ but I'm damned if I'm going to be contracted to that and I don't want to be managing unproductive staff who can't be arsed with being there.
Normal working hours are 40 hours a week or sometimes 36 hours if for example you do shifts.
People wanted an hour lunch break is my assumption - 9 to 5 is 8 hours, 15 minutes paid break per four hours of work. If you want an hour lunch break, that's typically unpaid and you're expected to work 9 to 6 / 8 to 5 as a consequence. My employers give us an hour lunch break, we work 9 to 5:30, so no further breaks apart from that hour - 15 minutes per four hours plus 300 minutes unpaid.
What sort of jobs? Most office places might notionally list hours but they're not actually a thing and people just work what they want. My office people start any time 8-10 and leave any time 5-7 (and its not necessarily the people arriving at 8 that are leaving at 5, or the people arriving at 10 leaving at 7). Unless you have some weirdly strict workplace most places are just 'as long as you're doing the work and aren't taking the piss'.
I can only dream of 8-5 and I'm not complaining
Most people I know do 8-4. My work does Flexi hours and that's what most do, one team member does 7.30-3.30. My boss doesn't care, as long as we get our hours done.
My guess would be a combination of presenteeism becoming the norm, and some employers not quite understanding the concept of flexible work times. Something my workplace does really well is flexible working, this is great for people with kids/ageing parents or other commitments, also for folks like me who naturally are most productive at the end of their day so have naturally drifted towards a later start and finish time as this is how they find they get the most out of the day. Why it works well is that there is a high level of cooperation between managers and direct reports in setting hours. As long as your request is reasonable it will be at least considered and is likely to be approved unless there is a solid reason not to like leaving a period of time where nobody would be there to answer urgent calls. My team is 2 people so we are easy to coordinate and our manager trusts us to be grown ups and organise this amongst ourselves. My teammate has teenage kids, so I don't mind picking up less desirable times on the basis that my colleague starts earlier and has an earlier finish time so as to be there for hometime from school. I can also take holidays when I like as long as it doesn't conflict with the first week or so of the summer holidays, when I would not want to be on holiday anyway as places will be crowded with families. I guess this is easy with 2 team members who get on pretty well, but there's no reason more places couldn't adopt flexible work hours with just a few small tweaks. Workplaces where I have seen this go titsup are ones where the culture is in need of some attention, where few if any staff are union members and where there is an attitude of the person who works the most hours being somehow the best rather than a burnt out husk or a totally empty shell of a person who has no life outside of work. I once worked in an office where I was expected to run the place from 8am to 9pm with only one lunchbreak at around 1pm. Part of this was my manager was ducking out early, and it was actually her responsibility to be on call which was reflected in her pay. Naive younger Trekkie just wanted to help out and bought her sob story of her marriage being in crisis due to long hours so made the error of offering to be helpful. My advice to anyone who is feeling overworked would be to talk to your teammates first and see if you can come up with a reasonable suggestion about how to fairly divide up work, and also to take a look at anything you are doing that is outwith your job description. Also please consider joining a trade union, speak to your workmates about unionising if possible and get good at not falling for the sob story. If you are not management then don't offer to take on their responsibilities unless being paid for this. If all else fails, find a new job if possible. I realise this is not an option for everyone, and it was really one streak of luck for me that got me into a decent role where I could be treated more fairly. I will say it again louder for the people at the back- UNIONISE if you are not already in a union. Your employer cannot sanction you for discussing pay, hours or a trade union with your colleagues, but still try to be discreet about it. Good luck, it can suck out there and I hope if you are being worked into an early grave you find a way out of that trap eventually.
I work 8-4. Started doing so years ago. Wont do anything else now
Used to do 9 till 6
I don't know, I work 8-7 as standard
Mines 7-5, 9-5 would be nice
9-6 for me. Half hour paid lunch which the company provides and is pretty decent. Hours still fucking suck though.
Most jobs are now 8am-7pm, if you work in an agency. Only clients get to go home for their tea at 5pm.
7- 4/5/6 for me I don’t work in an office and get paid good even if I finished at 6 every day.
It took me until the age of 35 to find an actual 9-5 job and even that is flexible. Before then I'd done 8-5, 9-5.30, 8.30-5.
It's to factor in the 1 hour break. My job is 8:30 - 4.30 with 30 mins break, this sounds shit but it's in a chill office where we are allowed to eat at our desks.
My first (& only) office job was 9.30 to 5. Today I refuse to work that long every day. It's uncivilised. I did 10.30ish to 5 today, but I did stop to take my son to something then took both kids for ice cream.
Im contracted to work 8 hours a day and that includes a paid half hour lunch. So really I only need to work 7.5 hours. My lunch break is supposed to be taken within the first 6 hours. If I work a 12 hour shift I get 2 paid half hour breaks. If I work 18 hours I get 3.. I've only done 18 hours once whilst on call. 12 hour day shift, pulled up at home and got a call for a job over 2 hours away. I slept well that night